Ogden Newspapers to Acquire Lisbon (OH) Morning JournalBack to News

LISBON, OH, December 2, 2003 – Trinity Holdings, Inc., owner of the Lisbon, Ohio Morning Journal, announced Monday an agreement to sell the newspaper to Ogden Newspapers, Inc. The sale of the 13,600-circulation daily is expected to close later this month. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Dirks, Van Essen & Murray, a newspaper merger-and-acquisition firm in Santa Fe, New Mexico, represented Trinity Holdings, Inc., in the transaction.

The Morning Journal is the product of a series of consolidations of newspapers in Lisbon dating back to the founding of the Buckeye State Newspaper in 1852. Daily publication began in 1909. Trinity International of Chester, England purchased the paper in 1987 from the Frew family, publishers for five generations. Trinity Holdings, Inc., of Monroeville, PA, has been the parent company since 1998.

Larry L. Dorschner, publisher of the Morning Journal, will remain in his position under the new ownership. "I am very happy that the Morning Journal will become part of Ogden Newspapers, " Dorschner said. "They bring a long and strong history of newspaper publishing. They are committed to investing in improvements to our facilities and equipment that will help us publish even better newspapers in the future."

Robert Nutting, chief executive officer of the Ogden Newspapers, said, "Our family is extremely pleased to have the opportunity to publish the Morning Journal, which is an excellent newspaper with a long history of service to a strong and solid community. This acquisition demonstrates our continuing commitment to, and faith in, the business of publishing community newspapers. We want the Morning Journal to be a forum for discussion of all issues affecting Lisbon and Columbiana County," Nutting added. "Our columns are always open to those who may differ with the editorial opinions expressed in our newspapers."

Ogden Newspapers, Inc., is a fourth-generation newspaper company founded by H.S. Ogden in Wheeling, West Virginia, and is owned by his descendants, the Nutting family. With this acquisition, the company will publish 39 daily newspapers in 11 states with distribution totaling more than 500,000. With the addition of the Morning Journal, Ogden publishes eight daily newspapers in Ohio, with combined daily circulation of 123,000, including the Salem News and The Review of East Liverpool.

For further information contact Philip Murray at Dirks, Van Essen & Murray, phone 505/820-2700, fax 505/820-2900.